And The Rest Of The World Falls Away
by impossibledaisy
Summary: As Zoe finds her whole world falling apart, she finds Evan, who becomes her world. [Sort of AU Bandtrees/Zoevan fanfiction because there's not nearly enough content for them]
1. Chapter 1

I tapped my pencil on the desk as I waited desperately for class to end. It was AP US History, aka the absolute most boring class in school. It was all memorization, and all about a bunch of old guys running kingdoms and losing and winning wars. History was just honestly not my thing. And it's the period right before lunch, so I'm even more desperate for Mr. Jackson to quit droning on so I can go eat and socialize.

11:30. Only five more minutes of this crap. My gaze shifted from clock to board to door and around again. This had to be the longest five minutes of my life. I stopped tapping my pencil and took in a deep breath to stop myself from going insane. I turn my head to the left to look out the window. I notice a boy looking at me. As soon as he sees me looking in his direction he blushes and looks away. As I get a better look at him, I recognize him. His name is Evan, I believe. We had 3rd period study hall last year. I've seen him at my Jazz Band concerts. He's the one who my brother pushed the other day.

Before I realized it, I was staring back at Evan. He looked back at me again, and I smiled awkwardly, then looked away. I could feel my face getting red. _Wow nice way to handle that, Zoe. _I looked back at the clock. 11:34. Just one more minute. Thankfully, the crappy bell system worked in my favor, ringing a minute early. As soon as I heard the bell, I stood bolt upright and grabbed my backpack, stuffing my History binder back in, and nearly ran out the door.

My History classroom, unfortunately is all the way on the other side of school, so unless I literally sprint, I have to wait in a huge crowd in order to get to the lunch quad. So, to avoid getting yelled at by faculty, I walk towards the quad and wait as at least 100 kids try to push their way through tiny double doors.

As I'm waiting, I look around me and notice Evan again, who's standing a couple feet away from me. I don't know why I've been noticing him so much today, he's always been there. I've just never really been looking.

Before I know it, I've made it through the stampede of the lunch line and I'm making my way to my lunch table, which has already been taken over by my friends, who are deep in conversation.

"Oh my god, he did not!" My friend Sarah exclaimed. I set my backpack down on the ground and sat down.

"He totally did! I was _so_ weirded out." My other friend Jessie responded, nearly jumping out of her seat.

"Who are we talking about?" I chuckled, glancing between the two of them. Jessie sat back down and flung her hands out, ready to spill some tea.

"So you know that weird kid, Evan?" She said, squinting a little. I felt my face go a little red. What a coincidence, the day I start noticing him, my friends do too?

"Yeah," I said, curious on what she had to say about him.

"Well, today, I got partnered up with him in Physics," she took a moment to groan, "And he was like, _totally _flirting with me, I was like, so grossed out." I frowned.

"Why? What's wrong with him?" I furrowed my brow and looked at Jessie.

"He's like… weird."

"Have you ever talked to him? Do you even know him?" I started exploding at her, and I have no clue why. I only really started noticing this kid today, but I was so mad at Jessie for talking about him like that.

"Well, no, but why do you care?" She folded her arms and gave a sassy look. I opened my mouth to protest, but closed it. I honestly did not know why I was fighting her.

"Ohh, you _like_ him don't you?" She said elephantly.

"I-" I began.

"Zoe Murphy likes the weird kid, who'd've guessed it." She taunted. I looked desperately to Sarah, who was just laughing along with Jessie.

"I don't like hi-"

" Evan and Zoe sitting in a tree!' Jessie sang elephantly.

"Shut up…" I clenched my fists.

"K-I-S-S-I-N-"

"Shut up Jessie!" I yelled, catching the attention of far too many people in the quad. I looked around at some of the people staring, then grabbed my backpack and walked away. Why had I reacted like that? It's not like I really knew him. I don't even know why I'd just started noticing him today. I'd seen him before. Passing in halls, in classes together. I'd known of him for years before now. So why did just seeing him today made me notice him? Why did-

Before I knew it I was on the floor. Well not quite on the floor, as I was on top of someone. Who that was I had no clue.

"Oh my god, I'm so sorry. I didn't mean to, my mind is just in another place today, I'm-" I exclaimed.

"No no no I'm sorry, I didn't- didn't see where I was going." As I began to stand up, I realized it was none other than Evan himself. Coincidence? Maybe, but at this point I was starting to get suspicious. He stood up first, then offered his cast-free hand, after wiping it off on his shirt. I took it, and stood up. I brushed the dirt off of my shirt. We made eye contact for a few moments before it became awkward, then I took my chance to start a conversation.

"Evan, right?" I brushed part of my hair behind my year

"Evan! I mean, I'm sorry. Yeah, that's my name. Sorry."

"Why are you sorry?"

"Because you said my name, and then I repeated it and that's just really annoying when people do that, I'm sorry," Evan rambled as he looked down at the floor.

"You say sorry a lot." I smiled and looked down too, trying to catch his gaze again.

"I'm sorry…" He met my gaze for a moment before looking down again. As he took a deep breath, I noticed his hands were shaking. "Y- your name's Zoe, right?"

"Yeah,"

"I've seen you in class before, and at the jazz band concerts. You're really good." He smiled a bit as he continued to look down. I smiled back. I looked at his cast. Written in giant, uppercase letters was the last name I wanted to read: "Connor." Unfortunately, before I could ask, the bell rang right then, so our time together had to come to an end.

"Well, it was nice talking to you."

"You too." I made a split-second decision.

"Here," I said softly, reaching into my back pocket, where I kept a small notebook of song-lyrics and ideas and ripped out a page. I grabbed a pen from my pocket too and quickly scribbled down my phone number. I handed the piece of paper to him. "I'll talk to you later then." He looked a little shocked to be holding the paper, but managed to nod his head. I smiled as I bolted off to my next class.


	2. Chapter 2

**A/N: Heyyyy, thanks to the people who reviewed! I really appreciate it and it gives me motivation to write, which is great because I am a terrible procrastinator when it comes to writing. This chapter is going to be in Evan's POV, I might alternate every chapter, I'm still figuring it out. Also just a warning, this chapter has a little bit of language because I wanted to portray Jared right, and I can't really do that without swearing tbh. But anyway, enjoy the next chapter!**

_Evan_

[Me]: jared holy crap

[Jared]: Why are you texting me, Hansen?

[Me]: uhhh

[Me]: because you're my friend?

[Jared]: Family friend.

[Me]: well whatever you're the closest i've got

[Jared]: Big oof

[Jared]: Well what did you want to tell me

[Me]: i got zoe murphy's phone number

[Jared]: Holy shit

[Jared]: That's a sentence I never thought I'd read

[Me]: what do i do? do i text her?

[Jared]: What else would you do?

[Me]: i don't know

[Jared]: Just text her

[Jared]: And ask her if I can have one of her friends numbers

[Me]: …

I shook my head and exited out of my chat with Jared. As I sat up on my bed I opened up the chat with Zoe's number where I had a draft of what I was going to say. Should I say, "Hi," or "Hey," or "Howdy." No no, definitely not the last one. I stared at the keyboard for a solid 3 minutes before finally typing.

[Me]: hi, it's evan.

The minute it took for her to respond felt like an hour. But as soon as I saw the screen flash the word, "typing…" I nearly leaped out of my bed.

[Zoe]: Heyy, how's it going?

Only slightly aware of how wide my smile was, I pondered what I should respond with. I knew I probably _shouldn't_ be thinking this much about it, but I couldn't help myself. I wanted to say, "Amazing to be talking to you, I've been dreaming about this for years on end," but I figured that _probably_ was too forward. I decided to go with the typical answer.

[Me]: pretty good, how about you?

I waited again for a response from Zoe, feeling equally nervous and excited at the same time. Suddenly there was a knock on my door, and then it opened. I quickly dropped my phone on my bed.

"Hey, honey! I got back from work early," My mom said, walking into my room, still wearing her medical scrubs.

"Oh, hi." I looked over to her and gave her a quick smile, my hand still on my phone. She tilted her head a bit.

"Whatcha doin?" She asked, leaning to the side a bit.

"Oh, nothing, just uh," I looked around me. "Texting Jared, yeah." She looked a little unsure for a moment.

"Well that's good, eh? He's a good friend." She came over and sat on the edge of my bed next to me. She wrapped her arms around me in an embrace. "I'm so proud of you." She mumbled as she squeezed tighter. I thought for a moment about what I'd been able to do. I was talking to the girl of my dreams and I wasn't _completely _freaking out.

"Me too," I said quietly. She released me from her embrace then stood back up.

"I think I'm gonna order some pizza, how 'bout that?" I shrugged.

"Maybe later, I'm not super hungry right now." The truth was there's no way I was going to eat tonight. Not while I could talk with Zoe. Hopefully I hadn't left her waiting for too long.

"Alright, I'll see you later then," She said as she started to close the door. "I love you."

"Love you, too," I replied, waiting until she closed the door all the way to frantically grab my phone and unlock it.

[Zoe]: I'm pretty good too. :)

I could feel myself blushing a little as I stared at her message. Who would have thought this would happen to me? I quickly typed out my response and leaned back on my bed.

**A/N: Sorry this chapter is kind of short. I'm sort of working out the kinks in the story, but it'll make more sense when I explain Zoe's side of what's going on. Also it's hard to write in Evan's POV. He's got a lot going on, but stick with this story! I'd really appreciate it! :)**


	3. Chapter 3

**A/N: Here's another chapter! I've somehow gotten inspiration to write over the last couple days, so I'm publishing this chapter now. There's not really a schedule for when I'm posting these, it's just when I get the chance/inspiration to write. Anyway, enjoy this chapter! It's kind of angsty.**

_Zoe_

[Me]: I'm pretty good too. :)

I sent the text then leaned back on my bed. I turned up the volume on my phone and put on some music, leaving one earbud in. The yelling from the other room grew louder and I could just barely make out some words. It was the same old stuff, "I hate you," "You're a disappointment," and of course crying from my mom. As it got even louder, I just put my other earbud in and tried to zone it out. I looked down at my text. Was it true? Not really, it's just kind of the typical response. Even if you're dying inside you say you're fine. It's like people are afraid of telling the truth, and showing weakness. Hell, even if you're having an amazing day, you don't say so. It's just pretty good. Ok. Fine.

I suddenly heard banging on my door through my earbuds. I winced, and just turned up the volume as loud as it could go. I could still hear him yelling.

"Go away Connor!" I shouted back at him. He didn't stop. I grabbed my pillow and rolled over on my side, putting the pillow over my ears. Mom and Dad weren't doing anything. They never did. Still able to hear his yelling, I felt tears well up in my eyes. _"I'm pretty good."_

I parked my car in the school parking lot and walked through the front door of the school. I was a few minutes early, surprisingly. Connor, still wasted from last night, was still asleep at home, so I was able to go through my morning routine without any interruptions. I walked out to the front quad to wait with some of my friends before my first period. I wasn't really mad at Jessie anymore. Well, maybe a little.

I looked around the courtyard until I spotted Jessie and Sarah sitting at a table not far away. I speedwalked over there and set my backpack down on the bench.

"Hey," I greeted with a smile, but with no response. I looked first at Sarah, then at Jessie, who ignored me. They simply looked at their phones. "Is there something wrong?" Jessie finally looked up from her phone with a deadpan look.

"Where were you last night?" She said with a frown. I racked my brain. What was last night? Suddenly it dawned on me.

"Oh shit."

"Yeah, you missed Mall Night. It's a sacred tradition Zoe! We've been doing it since 7th grade!"

"We were going to go dress shopping for the party on Friday," Sarah spat out.

"I'm sorry I had…" I thought for a moment, trying to find a way to not mention my brother, "Things going on." This didn't please Jessie.

"Let me guess, you were with the weirdo, since you're _best friends_ now." I cringed a little when she emphasized that. Jessie and I had been best friends since we started middle school. It was only since last summer when we started to drift apart.

"Listen, I hardly know Evan! I just don't think you should talk about him so negatively, ok?" I could feel my temper rising up.

"I think you need to remember who your friends are, Zoe." I clenched my fists and scrunched up my nose. I was practically fuming.

"I think you need to shut up!"

"No you shut up!"

"You know what, Jessie? I think I like Evan a little more than you right now." I put my hand on the table. I could see the hurt in her eyes.

"Then why don't you get the hell away from me and go hang out with the weirdo?"

"Fine!"

"Fine!"

"Fine!" With the last yell, I grabbed my backpack and walked straight away from their table. I didn't even look back. I wasn't very proud of how I acted there, but I wasn't going to put up with Jessie's crap. I walked around the corner over to the bench in the hall. I exhaled as I slumped in the seat and put my head in my hands. What a _great_ start to my day…

"Um, Zoe?" A familiar voice said softly. I parted my fingers a bit and saw a blue t-shirt and cast in front of me.

"Oh, Hi Evan." I sat up a bit and put my hands to my sides.

"You alright?" He looked concerned.

"Yeah, yeah, I'm fine." There it was again. Fine. Evan didn't seem to believe me. He arched his eyebrow a bit as we made eye contact. I hadn't noticed his eyes before. They were a light blue, almost the same color of his shirt. They were quite striking compared to his dark brown hair. Realizing I was probably staring for too long, I blinked and looked away.

"You sure?" He said, walking over to the side of me, and after making eye contact with me to make sure it's ok, sat down next to me. I turned my head to the right to look at him again, and gave him a sort of half smile as if to say, "Not really." He gave the same half smile back and we sat in silence for a few moments. Nothing really had to be said. Once again our moment was broken by the warning bell. We both stood up and put our backpacks back on. We stood facing each other, not quite wanting to leave yet.

"Well," I said, breaking the silence.

"I guess I'll see you later, then." Evan said, scratching the back of his head.

"Yeah," I replied. "Adios." I smiled a little awkwardly and pointed finger-guns at him. He did the same.

"Adios, Zoe." He smiled back, then backed away to walk to his class. I grinned to myself a bit. Yes, he's weird, but I could see more into him. Something true, something real. It's like he was hiding his real self a bit. _But when he's around me, I can see it._ I thought to myself. Pushing away the thought, I hurried to my class.


	4. Chapter 4

_Zoe_

The rest of the day was surprisingly going well, that is, until lunch. Somehow, it hadn't dawned on me that I didn't have anywhere to sit at lunch (due to the incident with Jessie this morning) until I arrived in the quad, lunch tray in hand. I just kind of stood there for a minute, surveying my options. Finally, I spotted Evan, sitting by himself at a table in the far corner. I began walking, and shot a look to Jessie and Sarah as I passed. As I approached his table, I gave him a quick smile.

"Hey, can I sit here?" Evan took a moment to finish chewing his sandwich, then nodded his head.

"Y-yeah, of course." I took a seat across the table from him and set down my lunch tray. He looked a little concerned. "Everything ok with your friends? I mean, not to assume or anything, it's just no one really sits with me, but I'm not lonely or anything, I mean you don't have to sit with me if you don't want or-"

"Evan, it's fine." His rambling droned out and he looked away, clearly embarrassed. "My friend Jessie and I are having a fight," I said plainly. He turned his head back to me, listening intently. "She got mad because I forgot to go to Mall Night, which is just a tradition we have every week, and- she thinks that I've been ignoring her-" I took a moment, wondering if I should mention his part in the fight. _Screw it._ "And been hanging out with _you _instead." Evan looked confused.

"But-"

"I know, it's stupid. She's crazy." Evan didn't say anything for a moment, just looked down at his hands. He looked back up at me.

"Well, i-if I'm in the way of your guys' friendship I don't- I don't-" _Oh shit._ I didn't want to make him feel guilty.

"Nononono!" I said over him until he stopped talking. "Please don't feel guilty, please don't." I sighed. "Jessie and I have been growing apart this year, and the reason we started fighting is because she was talking a bunch of crap about you, and I defended you." We made eye contact again. His look almost said, "Why?" To be honest I didn't know why. This boy, who I've known for years, but never really known. Who I've passed in the halls probably a thousand times but had never said a word to. All it took was one look and I felt a connection to him. For several moments we just sat there looking into each others eyes again, no need for words.

As per freaking usual, our moment got interrupted, but this time not by the bell. With a slam of hands on the table, I jerked my head to see none other than Jessie, tailed by Sarah, and another girl, Samantha, who had hung out with us a couple times before, but wasn't part of the trio.

"Aw, so cute, why don't you get a room already?" Jessie taunted, hands on her hips. I glared at her, my fist clenching. Evan just looked down, embarrassed, trying to pretend he wasn't there.

"What do you want, Jessie?" I hissed, trying the best that I could to remain calm.

"Oh, well I just wanted to see you and your new _boyfriend_." I squinted my eyes. She was just trying to mess with me. I shot an apologetic look to Evan. "Since you aren't hanging out with us anymore." I leaned over to look at Samantha.

"Well, it looks like I've already been replaced, so-" I started.

"Sam here said she's up to join us for Mall Night next week, like a good friend."

"So you've just come here to gloat, huh? Make it seem like you've moved on? Well since you can't leave me alone, clearly you're not." With this remark she only opened her mouth for a moment, then closed it and narrowed her eyes at me. I did the same. Neither of us moved from our position.

"Fine," she broke the silence. "If you decide you're done being all by yourself in the corner," she looked to Evan. I felt like strangling her. "You can still hang out with us at Jake's party this Friday." I raised an eyebrow. She just looked at Evan, then me, then humphed and walked away, entourage following behind. As soon as she was out of earshot I turned to Evan.

"I am so so sorry, Evan. I didn't mean to drag you into it, I-"

"No no, It's ok," He said. With a moment of hesitation, he took my hand. I looked down. Our hands fit perfectly in each others. Meant to be in a way. We both looked back into each others eyes. Maybe the same thing was running through his head. I looked into his eyes, a bit of his dark brown hair falling in his face. In this moment, I thought about the past couple days. Is it possible to fall in love so soon? Just from getting to know him a bit it's like I've known him for years. And in this moment, with his little half-smile, and the curl in front of his eyes. He's perfect. _No, nobody's perfect_. I corrected myself. _But to me he is. Perfectly imperfect._ I don't know how long we stayed there for. This was happening a lot. Just silent moments where we could say a million words without speaking.

I tightened my grip on his hand. I didn't want to let go. Maybe Evan felt the same, maybe he didn't. But right now, It was just me and him. And the rest of the world fell away.


	5. Chapter 5

_Evan_

I don't know how the hell it happened, but somehow I was actually hanging out with Zoe Murphy. Ever since that Tuesday when she started talking to me, for… some reason… we'd been hanging out every day. For once, I wasn't lonely anymore. I even worked up the courage to hold her hand. And she didn't take her hand away when I did it. We just shared another one of our moments, just staring into each others eyes. It was the best moment of my life.

And apparently she and I were going to a party this Friday. To say the least I was terrified. The last time I went to a party with other kids was Jared's 10th birthday party, which my mom made me go to, and I just ended up crying in the corner until my mom conceded and drove me home. And if that's how I acted 7 years ago at a birthday party with a bunch of 10 year olds, a party with at least 100 drunk teenagers would never end well. But, it was important to Zoe. I had to do it. She wanted to prove to Jessie that she didn't need her by going to the party an ignoring her. And there's no way I was going to let her go by herself. As worried as I was for myself to be there, I was more worried for her. If something happened to her and I wasn't there, I don't know what I would do. Even though I don't believe it, I'm her friend now.

So that's how I found myself sitting shotgun in Zoe Murphy's car, parked outside a stranger's house. I looked down at my hands while we waited to go into the house. Jazz music played quietly from her radio. We didn't say anything, we just sat there, debating if we were really going to go through with it.

"I- You- you don't _have_ to do this, if you really don't want to-" I broke the silence. Zoe looked down and fumbled with the hem of her dress. Her face was lit up by the pale light coming from the house. Her hair fell down in her face a little, and she pushed it back behind her ear. _How can someone be so perfect?_

"No, no. I have to do this." She assured herself, taking a deep breath. "I need to prove to Jessie that I don't need her." I smiled widely at her. She smiled back. "Let's do this," She said, nodding her head. She opened the car door, and stood up, facing the house. I did the same, and walked around the car to stand next to her. She brushed out the bottom of her dress, then stood up tall. I don't know how she could have this kind of confidence. Here she was, facing someone who was causing her pain head on, looking like a goddamn angel. And here I am, hands sweating like crazy, and slouching behind her, trying my best. It's like yin and yang, me and her. Polar opposites, but it somehow works.

We walked up to the front door and Zoe knocked, then put her hands into the pockets of her dress. A kid I recognized from school opened the door and let us in. Within 5 seconds of being in the house, the smell of alcohol and booming rap music was overwhelming. I felt my hands begin to shake. There were people everywhere. Literally everywhere I looked was another teenager. I could smell smoke and alcohol and all I could hear was yelling and music. I felt a sharp pain in my chest. I'd only been in there for a few minutes, why must my anxiety be acting up. I tried to play it off, nobody needed to notice. I just needed to find a quiet corner to recollect myself. I could hear my heart pounding in my head. I just needed to keep an eye on Zoe. Find somewhere to calm down. Keep an eye on Zoe. Find somewhere-

I had lost Zoe. As we were walking down the hall, someone must have pushed between us. In the mad stampede of teenagers, I couldn't see her. My heart was beating louder. I could hardly hear myself think. Where did she go? Where did she go? I backed myself up against the wall and crouched down. I tried desperately to slow my breathing, but I could hardly breathe at all. I closed my eyes. I couldn't hear anything over the pounding of my heart. I don't know how long I sat there. It felt like days.

I felt a touch on my shoulder. I forced my eyes open. My sight was blurry, but I could make out the dusty brown hair of Zoe in front of me.

"Oh my god, Evan." I could barely hear. "Let's get you out of here." I felt her grab my hand and help pull me up from the ground. She put her arm around my waist and began walking me through the house. She brought me out to the backyard and we sat down on the porch. With a breath of fresh air and a little bit of quiet, my heart was pounding a little less. I tapped my fingers on my cast. My chest still hurt, but a little less. After a little while, I was mostly calmed down.

"I am so sorry Evan," Zoe said softly, regret in her voice. I turned my head to look up to her. Her face was full of guilt. "You never had to come, I could have done it on my own. And then I lost you, and this is all my fault I'm so so sorry." I reached out my hand to her.

"Zoe, it's ok." I gave her a half-smile. "I- sometimes my anxiety gets the best of me and there's really not much I can do about it."

"I'm sorry."

"No, don't be," I grabbed her hand and squeezed it tight. "I'm kind of used to it." She gave me a look that said she wanted to say more, but she didn't. She just squeezed my hand back. I looked at her for a while. The way the moonlight reflected on her skin. The way her hazel eyes seemed to glow. The way her hair fell perfectly on her shoulders. She's beautiful. _God, I love her so much._ She looked at me and smiled so wide. That smile that's just so real. I'd seen a lot of fake smiles, but hers was so effortless. So genuine. She looked back into the house and chuckled.

"I _really_ don't want to go back in there." I laughed with her. She looked off to the side for a moment, thinking. She turned back to look at me. "Come on." She stood up, and pulled me up with her.

"What are we doing?" I asked as she pulled me down the stairs of the deck into the yard. We walked into the middle of the yard, and she led me under a tree.

"This tree looks very climbable, don't you think?" She said playfully. I smiled.

"Might not be the best idea. Last time I climbed a tree, this happened." I raised my broken arm.

"You fell out of a tree?" She sounded both concerned and slightly amused.

"Yeah, I was working over the summer as an assistant park ranger, and I tried climbing a tree to the top, and one of the branches gave way and I… fell." Zoe looked sympathetic.

"I really love trees, though. They're fascinating." I touched the bark of the tree. "This one's an oak." Zoe walked closer to me, hands in pockets. "You can tell because the bark is small and scaly." I pointed up the tree. "Also, the acorns." Zoe laughed.

"Trees are cool and all don't get me wrong, but I always loved stargazing," Zoe said, walking over to where she could see the sky clearly. I walked over with her. She sat on the grass, and lay down on her back, looking up to the stars. I sat down next to her and did the same. I turned my head to face her and blushed. We were _very_ close right now, but I tried not to think too hard about it. Zoe pointed her arm up to the stars right above us.

"See, if you look _right there_, you can see the Big Dipper. See the handle?" Zoe said softly. I nodded, noticing how the stars could almost link together. "And _right_ below it is the Little Dipper." I turned my head and saw how happy she looked to describe something she loved. Her face grew somber for a moment. "I used to always go out and look at the stars when…" She paused. "When my parents were yelling at Connor. I'd sneak out my window and just lay on the lawn and look at the stars. They really make you think, you know. Like no matter what's going on in your life, the stars, they just keep on shining." I turned my head from the stars to look at her. "When you find yourself in a dark place," she turned her head to face me. "You've got to find your stars."

We were only inches apart. I looked into her eyes and she looked into mine. I reached my hand out to touch her face and she did the same. Without a second thought, I leaned closer and closed the gap between us. I closed my eyes as I kissed her, and soon she started to kiss back. It only lasted for a few moments before we pulled away. We looked into each other's eyes again, no words to be said. Except this time, that moment was disturbed by Zoe reaching for another kiss.

**A/N: This was a really long chapter, so that's cool. It was difficult to write because A: writing Evan is hard in the first place because I don't really know the best way to get into his head. B: I wrote the panic attack, and being someone who's never had one, only been around someone who had one is difficult, so I did the best I could. And C: I've never been kissed before, so the kissing scene is really bad, so I apologize. Anyway, I'm uploading this in the middle of the night without really editing it, so I apologize for any mistakes. Hope you enjoyed the chapter anyway!**


	6. Chapter 6

**A/N: Sorry this took a while, I was sick, had writer's block, the whole deal. And this chapter is really bad, I apologize. I just wanted to write something. I wrote most of it at midnight and it's probably riddled with grammar mistakes. But hey, content! I'd really appreciate it if y'all could review the story for me! It really inspires me to keep writing, knowing that people like the story. Tell me what you like, and tell me how bad my writing is! Anyway, enjoy this crappy chapter!**

_Zoe_

My head was still reeling from the kiss. It wasn't my first, but it was the first one that mattered. I'd had two boyfriends in the past. My first kiss wasn't special. It was with a boy named Aaron Johnston back in freshman year. We got together because Jessie got asked to homecoming by Aaron's best friend, and so neither of us could go alone. When our parents picked us up, he kissed me goodbye. We ended up breaking up three days later because he apparently kissed another girl as soon as I left.

My second kiss was with my only long-term boyfriend, Ben Goldsmith. We got together towards the end of last year. After what happened with Aaron, I was wary around boys, but Ben seemed kind. He seemed that he actually cared. Our first kiss was on the beach, at sunset. It seemed _totally_ cliche, but it was romantic. We stayed together until halfway through the summ

er when I went to a band camp, and when I got back, we got into a fight. Turns out he cheated on me as well. So my track record with boyfriends isn't the best.

But this kiss with Evan. It was different. He was different. There's something about him that was so… genuine. So real. It was clear he cared about me. And only me. For me, this was new. In my own family, it was centered around Connor. He was such a screw up that I had to try extra hard just to stay normal. And yet I still went ignored. Being friends with Jessie was always about her. I was there just so she didn't seem lonely. So she had someone to talk to. She didn't give a damn about me, I saw now.

Evan and I just sat in the grass together, as I rested my head on his shoulder. It was mostly quiet, except for the echo of the music from the house. I took his hand and he looked down at me, smiling.

"This is so much better than being inside there at the party," I broke the silence. Evan laughed quietly.

"Definitely," he replied, planting a kiss on my cheek. Suddenly, a loud slam of a door. Teenage giggling. _Are you kidding me? Every damn time we have a moment._ I sat up a bit and whipped my head around. Of course it's the last person I wanted to see right now. Jessie.

"Shit…" I said under my breath. Evan turned his head around too. She wasn't alone. She was tailed by… oh no. "Shit shit shit shit shit-" I stood up with a start and pulled Evan up with me by the arms.

"Wha- what's wrong, Zo'?" Evan asked, eyes wide.

"We need to go. Right now." I swiveled my head around, trying to find a place to hide. All I could see was a couple trees. I started to push Evan forward, but he just took my hands and gave me a concerned look.

"Ev- We need-"

"Well, well, well…" Jessie's voice rang out from across the field.

"Shit…" I closed my eyes and rested my forehead on Evan's chest.

"Look what we have here, two _losers_ sharing a romantic evening by some trees, how adorable!" Jessie sneered.

"Jessie, I swear-" I spinned around to face her. Her hands were on her hips, and standing next to her, with an arm around her shoulder was Ben. My Ben. _Not anymore, Zoe. _I opened my mouth to say something, but Ben just gave me a look that was so familiar. It was unnerving. We hadn't talked since we broke up. I knew Jessie was with him purely to get at me. It was pathetic. _You're still falling for it though, idiot._ I clenched my fist.

"Aw, are we mad, Zoe?" Jessie taunted. I did my best to control my anger, but I was struggling. "Are we going to freak out just like your screw-up of a brother?" _How dare she?_ I took a step towards her, but Evan grabbed my wrist, hands shaking. "You're really no better than him, are you?" _That's it!_ I pulled my arm away from Evan and started to charge towards Jessie, heart racing. I was going wild. But I didn't care. I wanted her to feel how I did.

"Zoe no!" I heard from behind me as I was inches away from Jessie. Before I knew it I was pulled backwards. Evan had grabbed me by the waist and pulled me back. Tears welled in my eyes.

"No! Let me go!" I screamed. "Let me go, Evan!" I sobbed, collapsing in his arms. How could I have been so stupid. This was exactly what Jessie wanted. She wanted to get me angry. She even mentioned Connor. This was the moment I most regretted ever being friends with Jessie. She knew my secrets. And I was too blind to see that she'd use them against me. There was a silence for a moment. I tried to slow my breaths. Evan pulled me closer to him. I could feel his heart beating quickly.

"Y- you know what, Jessie?" I looked up, surprised to hear Evan talking. He was breathing really heavily.

"Oh, so the loser _can_ talk?" She taunted. I whipped my head towards her and glared.

"You- you're so focused on- on ruining other people's lives. What did Zoe ever do to you?" Evan asked, his eyebrows raised. Jessie crossed her arms in front of her. She said nothing. "You don't even know!"

'Because you got everything!" She screeched at me. "You got first place in the talent show! You got the solo in jazz band! You got Aaron! You got Ben! You got every damn thing I ever wanted and it's not fair! I deserve those things! Not you! Me!" I stood up straight, and wiped my tears.

"Are you really that shallow?" I said softly. She only gaped at me, tears forming in her eyes. She raised her middle finger at me, then stormed away. Ben waited around for a moment, but I just glared at him until he followed Jessie. I heard the slam of the door again. I turned to face Evan.

"I'm so sorry, Evan… she- she mentioned Connor and I just-" I hid my face in my hands. "I'm a mess."

"Hey," he said softly. "I don't know the full story of what you've gone through. I don't need you to tell me, if- if you don't want to. But I'm here." I took my hands down from my face to look at him. He smiled so perfectly at me. "And I can't even explain how I feel about you, I-" I put my arms around his shoulders. He looked straight into my eyes and placed his hand up to my face. "I love you." With that, I closed my eyes leaned in for a kiss.


End file.
